Who is the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit, which is the third person of the Godhead, is the Spirit of God and the Power of God.

Christian Devotional4 February 201910 min read

The Holy Spirit, which is the third person of the Godhead,

is the Spirit of God and the Power of God. He is that Spirit that proceeds from

the father and is made manifest where the father pleases and in the same

wholeness of God as He is on the throne. The Holy Spirit is not in any way

lesser than God the Father or God the Son.

He is co-equal with God; He is Himself God in all of God’s Omnipotence.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS A PERSON

Until we begin to appreciate the Holy Spirit as a person and

relate to him as such, we’ll not be

able to enjoy the full benefit of his presence. He is a person with a purpose

to reveal to us the things that God has prepared for us that love Him, and that

we might know the things that are freely given to us by God (1Corinthians 2: 9 – 10 & 12).

HOW DO WE KNOW THAT THE HOLY SPIRT IS A PERSON?

A person has a will, emotion and intellect: A will to

determine or to take action, emotion to express feelings, and intellect to

understand, apprehend or perceive. The Holy Spirit has all of these three.

His will is to dwell in us so that we could have the

fullness of his benefits. The Holy Spirit has an unlimited reservoir of

intelligence as evidenced in His revelation of hidden wisdom and through

revelation of deep truths of God to us (1Corinthians.2:10). The Holy Spirit

could be angry, grieved and blasphemed(Ephesians 4:30). He loves us with an

everlasting love and has shed His love abroad in our heart (Romans 5:5).

EXERCISE: List other scriptures which help us prove that the

Holy Spirit is a person

HE IS ALLOS-PARAKLETORS’

i.e. another comforter of the same kind (John 14:16-20).

The character of the Holy Spirit is properly described in

the Greek word, Allos-Parakletos’.

The word ‘Allos-Parakletos’ has seven synonyms:

Comforter, Counsellor, Teacher, Helper, Strengthener, Intercessor and standby.

SEVEN SYNONYMS OF “PARAKLETOS” (THE COMFORTER- HOLY SPIRIT

AS RELATED TO THE CRHISTIAN I.E. WHO HE IS TO THE CHRISTIAN.

He is the Comforter(John 14:16; 2 Cor 1:3)

As a comforter, the Holy Spirit was sent primarily to

comfort God’s people. We

(Christians) live in a world that is largely anti-God. God, knowing the

opposition and persecution we would face as Christians, sent the Holy Spirit to

be our source of comfort. The early disciples during the time of persecution

walked in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit; and they

were greatly multiplied (Acts 9:31).

He is the Counsellor (Is11:2;Rom 8:14)

Have you ever been faced with a moment of great

decision? The guidance of the Holy

Spirit is available to every child of God. We should all expect the Holy Spirit

to be our guide. After all, for as many

as are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God (Romans 8:14) Proverbs

20:27 says, “The spirit

of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly”. To live in continuous victory, we must be led

by the Spirit of God.

He is the Helper (Romans 8:26)

Help as define by oxford-advanced learner’s dictionary means “to make it easier for somebody to do something, to

assist somebody. The Holy Spirit as our helper assists us to do all that God

has called us to do. He makes it easy for us to live successfully as Christians

in this corrupt world. There are times when you are faced with a great task and

you are wondering how you would succeed. Be sure of this, you are not walking

alone. Foe example, Believers’

Loveworld is a ministry that God has marvellously helped. In just a short time

of our starting, we have achieved so much, if it were not for the help of the

Holy Spirit; we would not have achieved so much. We are conscious of this fact,

that is why we know that what we have done so far is just the beginning. With

His help, there is no telling what we can do and where we can go. Glory to God!

He is the Strengthener (Phil 4:13; Is 11:2)

God’s Spirit

gives strength to man. Paul declared that he could do all things through Christ

who strengthens him. Isaiah 11:2 calls Him the Spirit of might. In the Old

Testament, men like David, Samson, Elijah etc, did mighty things by the power

of the Spirit. In our days we can do much more. I heard the story of a woman

whose son got involved in a car accident, when she got to the car she single

handily lifted up the car and rescued the son. People who saw her were amazed.

Afterwards four strong men couldn’t

lift up the car. The Holy Spirit resident in our spirit is a source of great

strength. If we stay full of Him, we can never experience defeat in our lives.

He is the Intercessor (Romans 8:26)

An intercessor is one who stands in the gap for

another. According to Romans 8:26, “we don’t always know what to pray for as we ought to…”We can’t possibly know in our natural mind everything we

should pray about in every circumstance and situation. The Holy Spirit assists

us in our prayers with groaning that cannot be uttered in articulate speech.

He is the Teacher (1 Cor 2:9-11; 1 John 2:20; John

16:13)

As a teacher, the Holy Spirit carried on the ministry of

Jesus, which was to a large extent a teaching ministry. When we receive the

Holy Spirit, He indwells our spirit man; He serves as a teacher to our spirit.

We must realize that the things of God cannot be understood by the natural

mind, but they are revealed to our spirits; it is with our spirit that we

contact God. As a teacher, He reveals to us the hidden mysteries of the kingdom

of God. Non-Christians cannot understand why we do the things we do. But we

have unction from the Holy one and we know all things. Most times, when I want

to study God’s Word I

pray this simple prayer, “O blessed

Holy Spirit, unveil the truth unto my spirit that I may stand in the fullness

of the provision of my father, for He is my father, I love Him and He Loves me”. He has made studying God’s Word a joyful experience for

me.

He is the Standby (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

Anytime we are in church during a service and there is an

interruption in power supply, we always put on our standby generator. The Holy Spirit is also referred to as the

standby, in John 14:17, Jesus said the Holy Spirit shall be in us and with us.

Paul went through different experiences that revealed certain weaknesses in his

life. The good thing was that even in

the midst of his weakness, the Holy Spirit was at hand to strengthen him. We

can also enjoy this ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives. There are times

when we are overwhelmed by issues and circumstances that reveal weaknesses in

us. At such times we should remember the Holy Spirit as our standby. God has promised that He would never leave us

nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

EVERY CHRISTIAN CAN RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT

The scriptures let us know that the Spirit has been poured

out on all flesh (Joel 2:28; Acts 2:17).

This means the Holy Spirit has been made available for all to receive.

The only requirement for receiving the Holy Spirit is for one to be born

again. (Acts 2:38-39). The Holy Spirit

responds to hunger and fills those Christians who desire Him (Luke 11:13;

Isaiah 44:3).

FELLOWSHIP WITH THE SPIRIT

Fellowship is explained in the Chamber’s English dictionary as “Companionship”.

The dictionary further calls it a “Lying

together”. It is a relationship, a

process that circles around two or more individuals. It is an affair. Fellowship

with the Holy Spirit is a love affair between the Spirit of God and us. The

word fellowship is best described by the Greek work “Koinonia”.

Koinonia is an all round word for fellowship, which gives a further insight

into three words: Communication, Communion

and Transportation.

Communication

It is the transference of information between two or more

individual with feedback. In our fellowship with the Holy Spirit, we are

engaged in communication with Him. A communication that comes about as a result

of our relationship with him. We speak

to Him knowing that he will surely answer (1 John 5:14-15).

Communion

This is oneness, togetherness, a binding, a gluing and

identification. Communion with the Holy Spirit tells us who we are, and that we

are one with Him, “For by one

spirit we are all baptized into one body and have all been made to drink into

one spirit” (1

Corinthians 12:13).

Transportation

This is the conveyance (movement) of goods and people from

one place to another. You may ask how this concerns the Christian and his

relationship with the Holy Spirit. There are times when you fellowship with the

Holy Spirit and He will carry you (John 13:12).

THE HOLY SPIRIT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE IN THE CHRISTIAN’S LIFE

The life of the Christian should be different, and this can

be made possible only by the infilling of the Holy Spirit. In John 16:12-13,

Jesus Himself said, “I have yet

many things to say to you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when He, the

Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth…” The unbeliever does not know the things to come,

but the Holy Spirit reveals this to the Christian. The Christian is the man

that has hope in this world.

The Holy Spirit makes the life of the Christian

fruitful. Without Him, the life of the

Christian is like a flower that does not receive daily nutrient. (Isaiah

32:15). This is the difference between the Spirit filled Christian and the

Christian that is not filled with the Holy Spirit. With the infilling of the

Holy Spirit, any dryness in the Christian turns to fruitfulness and

fruitfulness to abundance (forest). The person of the Holy Spirit is Christ in

you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).

HIS MINISTRY THROUGH CHRISTIANS

It is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can be

effective witnesses of the death, burial and resurrection of

our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ said to his disciples

that they would receive power. After the Holy Spirit is come upon them (Acts

1:8). This power is to enable them fulfil the ministry that he has called them

into. All Christians have been called into this ministry (Ephesians 4:12); Luke

4:17-18 records our function or responsibilities in this ministry. The Holy

Spirit empowers all Christians to do the following:

a) Preach the

Gospel to the poor.

b) Heal the broken

hearted

c) Preach

deliverance to the captives

d) Recovery of

sight to the blind

e) Set at liberty

them that are bruised

CONCLUSION

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. He helps

the Christians to live victorious lives, through His character: Comforter,